ahlam1399
01-15-2018, 08:41 AM
PESHAWAR: The extension of the Supreme Court and Peshawar High Court (PHC) jurisdiction to the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) would safeguard the rights of the tribespeople and provide them proper administration of justice in accordance with the Constitution.
On Friday, the National Assembly passed a bill extending the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court and the PHC to Fata. The bill said, "This act may be called the Supreme Court of Pakistan and Peshawar High Court Extension of Jurisdiction to Federally Administered Tribal Areas Act 2018."
The bill explained that superior courts shall have, in relation to Fata, the same jurisdiction as it has in relation to the province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. It was stated that the objects and reasons of the bill were to bring the people of Fata into the mainstream in accordance with their wishes and aspirations.
The bill said it was necessary that the jurisdiction of Supreme Court and PHC should be extended to Fata for safeguarding their rights and providing them proper administration of justice in accordance with the Constitution.
The government in the draft bill had first proposed extension of Islamabad High Court (IHC) to the tribal areas, but this was changed to PHC on the demand of the Fata parliamentarians and members of the tribal intelligentsia as Islamabad was located far away from Fata.
The extension of Superior Courts to Fata is also a ray of hope for Dr Shakeel Afridi, who has been accused of spying for the CIA to hunt down al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden and was convicted of having links with the outlawed militant group, Lashkar-i-Islam. His revision appeal has been pending before the Fata Tribunal since 2014.
In his appeal against his conviction, Dr Shakeel Afridi had questioned his trial and claimed that right of defence was not given to him in the case, even though it is his fundamental right.
The PHC didn't have jurisdiction in the detention cases from Fata wherein citizens were picked up from the settled area by the political administration or law-enforcement agencies.
In many cases, the high court simply dismissed appeals against the decisions made under the Frontier Crimes Regulation (FCR) by political agents and assistant political agents on the question of jurisdiction. "We would now get justice from the Supreme Court and PHC. We have been deprived of our fundamental rights since the creation of Pakistan," Fata Lawyers Forum (FLF) President Rahim Shah told The News on Sunday.
He said there was no justice system in Fata under the FCR as political agent at the same time played the role of complainant, investigator and judge. FLF former president Mohammad Ijaz Mohmand said the forum with the help of Fata parliamentarians had won this right for the people of Fata and it was a historic development.
After extension of the higher courts, he said there would be a check on the violation of fundamental rights of the people of Fata guaranteed by the Constitution. "We strived for the extension of the superior courts' jurisdiction to Fata," he said. He added the forum had passed resolutions from the platform of the PHC Bar Association and the Supreme Court Bar Association in favour of the extension.
He said the FLF had also filed a case in PHC to seek extension of superior judiciary to Fata. He said the PHC had directed the federal government to pass a law for this purpose. Ijaz Mohmand said that the extension of the jurisdiction of the superior courts would restrain the political administration from violating the fundamental rights of the tribal people under the FCR.
Despite being an integral part of Pakistan, he said inhabitants of Fata didn't enjoy the protection of their fundamental rights guaranteed by the Constitution. The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly had also passed a resolution demanding representation of people of Fata in the provincial assembly and extension of superior courts' jurisdiction to the tribal areas. Former minister for Law, Parliamentary Affairs and Human Rights Arshad Abdullah, who belongs to the ANP, had moved the resolution to ask the government to abolish the Frontier Crimes Regulation (FCR) Tribunal and establish a proper judicial forum.
The resolution demanded deletion of clause (7) of Article 247 of the Constitution for being in violation of fundamental rights of tribal people and called for extension of the jurisdiction of the higher courts to Fata.
In April 2014, a larger bench of the PHC had advised the Parliament to make suitable amendments to Article 247(7) of the Constitution so that the jurisdiction of superior courts is extended to Fata.However, this was later challenged by the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz-led federal government in the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court in its decision declared that the high court cannot pass direction, but can only advise the government.
http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/com/cwEr/~4/lovyrZzX0BE
أكثر... (http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/com/cwEr/~3/lovyrZzX0BE/268490-superior-courts-extension-to-safeguard-rights-of-tribesmen)
On Friday, the National Assembly passed a bill extending the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court and the PHC to Fata. The bill said, "This act may be called the Supreme Court of Pakistan and Peshawar High Court Extension of Jurisdiction to Federally Administered Tribal Areas Act 2018."
The bill explained that superior courts shall have, in relation to Fata, the same jurisdiction as it has in relation to the province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. It was stated that the objects and reasons of the bill were to bring the people of Fata into the mainstream in accordance with their wishes and aspirations.
The bill said it was necessary that the jurisdiction of Supreme Court and PHC should be extended to Fata for safeguarding their rights and providing them proper administration of justice in accordance with the Constitution.
The government in the draft bill had first proposed extension of Islamabad High Court (IHC) to the tribal areas, but this was changed to PHC on the demand of the Fata parliamentarians and members of the tribal intelligentsia as Islamabad was located far away from Fata.
The extension of Superior Courts to Fata is also a ray of hope for Dr Shakeel Afridi, who has been accused of spying for the CIA to hunt down al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden and was convicted of having links with the outlawed militant group, Lashkar-i-Islam. His revision appeal has been pending before the Fata Tribunal since 2014.
In his appeal against his conviction, Dr Shakeel Afridi had questioned his trial and claimed that right of defence was not given to him in the case, even though it is his fundamental right.
The PHC didn't have jurisdiction in the detention cases from Fata wherein citizens were picked up from the settled area by the political administration or law-enforcement agencies.
In many cases, the high court simply dismissed appeals against the decisions made under the Frontier Crimes Regulation (FCR) by political agents and assistant political agents on the question of jurisdiction. "We would now get justice from the Supreme Court and PHC. We have been deprived of our fundamental rights since the creation of Pakistan," Fata Lawyers Forum (FLF) President Rahim Shah told The News on Sunday.
He said there was no justice system in Fata under the FCR as political agent at the same time played the role of complainant, investigator and judge. FLF former president Mohammad Ijaz Mohmand said the forum with the help of Fata parliamentarians had won this right for the people of Fata and it was a historic development.
After extension of the higher courts, he said there would be a check on the violation of fundamental rights of the people of Fata guaranteed by the Constitution. "We strived for the extension of the superior courts' jurisdiction to Fata," he said. He added the forum had passed resolutions from the platform of the PHC Bar Association and the Supreme Court Bar Association in favour of the extension.
He said the FLF had also filed a case in PHC to seek extension of superior judiciary to Fata. He said the PHC had directed the federal government to pass a law for this purpose. Ijaz Mohmand said that the extension of the jurisdiction of the superior courts would restrain the political administration from violating the fundamental rights of the tribal people under the FCR.
Despite being an integral part of Pakistan, he said inhabitants of Fata didn't enjoy the protection of their fundamental rights guaranteed by the Constitution. The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly had also passed a resolution demanding representation of people of Fata in the provincial assembly and extension of superior courts' jurisdiction to the tribal areas. Former minister for Law, Parliamentary Affairs and Human Rights Arshad Abdullah, who belongs to the ANP, had moved the resolution to ask the government to abolish the Frontier Crimes Regulation (FCR) Tribunal and establish a proper judicial forum.
The resolution demanded deletion of clause (7) of Article 247 of the Constitution for being in violation of fundamental rights of tribal people and called for extension of the jurisdiction of the higher courts to Fata.
In April 2014, a larger bench of the PHC had advised the Parliament to make suitable amendments to Article 247(7) of the Constitution so that the jurisdiction of superior courts is extended to Fata.However, this was later challenged by the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz-led federal government in the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court in its decision declared that the high court cannot pass direction, but can only advise the government.
http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/com/cwEr/~4/lovyrZzX0BE
أكثر... (http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/com/cwEr/~3/lovyrZzX0BE/268490-superior-courts-extension-to-safeguard-rights-of-tribesmen)